This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/173,881, filed Dec. 30, 1999, which is hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in its entirety.
There are thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of websites which sell products online. Some of these websites sell products within a particular category (e.g. eToys for toys), while others have emerged as online shopping malls (e.g. Amazon.com's, Bizrate.com, zShops) where consumers can find a variety of products which are not necessarily related or within a particular category. However, one area of commerce has been relatively ignored with the proliferation of dot.com businesses. This neglected area of eCommerce is services.
Not surprisingly, many partial substitutes exist in the marketplace. The major telecom companies advertise their “rate plans” on their websites and numerous websites offer cellular phone or paging services. Utilities.com from IdeaLab offers utilities in certain markets. Mortgage.com and others offer home loans. Numerous websites offer automobile insurance.
While there are entities which sell or promote services online, services ranging from accounting to website design, there is not a single website which provides adequate systems and methods that allow the consumers and businesses to shop in one place for services under a variety of service sectors—an online “services mall” so to speak.
The systems and methods for making, processing, and accepting online applications for a particular kind of service are known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,966,699 of Zandi, entitled “System and Method for Conducting Loan Auction over Computer Network” discloses, among other things, systems of an online auction of a loan. The '699 patent is hereby incorporated by reference for all that is disclosed therewithin as if set forth herein in its entirety. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,995,947 of Fraser, et al., entitled “Interactive Mortgage and Loan Information and Real-Time Trading System” discloses, among other things, an online loan application system. The '947 patent is hereby incorporated by reference for all that is disclosed therewithin as if set forth herein in its entirety. However, none of the aforementioned sites or systems provides one-stop shopping for consumers to compare and shop for services on-line and manage, update, add or cancel service accounts across a variety of different service sectors using a single or minimal number of user interfaces.
One probable reason why there is not a single website that adequately addresses the needs of consumers and business shopping for a variety of services is the fundamental differences between providers of goods and providers of services. Goods are tangible items that are typically manufactured according to standard specifications and priced independent of the attributes of a particular consumer. Goods are often standardized so that they are suitable for a large population of consumers. In contrast, services are often provided and priced depending on the unique attributes and circumstances of a particular consumer or group of consumers. To illustrate the differences, a microwave oven can be purchased by a consumer regardless of the consumer's location, age, level of education, etc. On the other hand, a service program such as health insurance might depend on all the foregoing. In further illustration, another service such as mortgage brokerage services might depend on a different set of consumer characteristics such as the consumer's annual income, estimated market value of home, credit history, etc. Because of the unique nature of each individual seeking services and the unique nature of the characteristics required by service providers to produce service pricing and offerings, there has yet to be a system or methods that allow consumers to have a single source for a variety of service needs over a variety of service sectors.
As can be appreciated from the foregoing discussion, there are many complexities and logistics associated with the online selection of service providers. While there have been some attempts toward reducing the time and effort involved in the process, existing systems and methods have problems that need to be addressed. Accordingly, there is a substantial need for systems and methods that enable one-stop shopping for consumers to compare and shop for services on-line, manage, update, add and/or cancel service accounts across a variety of different service sectors.